


He Probably Cares, Right?

by Justanotherfangirl



Category: The Adventure Zone (Podcast)
Genre: Blood, Gen, Light Angst, a sprinkling of angst its barely there, lol this is so self indulgent and the ending is dumb but i think ill go back and edit it, nothing graphic though, this is my first fic ever idk what I'm doing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-06
Updated: 2017-05-06
Packaged: 2018-10-28 15:46:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,030
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10834359
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Justanotherfangirl/pseuds/Justanotherfangirl
Summary: (Hint: the answer is yes he does a lot)Taako loves Angus, even though he's bad at showing it. Angus discovers this on his first real (kinda?) mission with the boys!





	He Probably Cares, Right?

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys thanks for reading, this is my first fic ever and I'm kinda nervous to post it. I'll probably edit the ending some. I really love Taako so I think after this I'll write some more for him! I already have some ideas! If you want more Taako content and have some ideas feel free to hit me up on here or on my tumblr: http://the-syrup-witch.tumblr.com

Angus had been so excited to go with Taako, Merle, and Magnus on his first mission, though it barely qualified as a real “mission”. It wasn’t to reclaim an artifact; the Director would never allow that, even though Angus argued all the reasons he should go and help every time the boys left. This was more like a pleasure mission, a chance for the boys to stretch their legs while doing some errands for the Director.

“Sirs, do your think we’ll see any monsters? Get into any fights? I’d love to see you fight, I haven’t since we met on the Rockport Limited, and even then I didn’t really get to see much fighting, and I’ve been practicing my magic really really hard so I thought maybe I could-“

“Agnes,” Taako drawled, twirling his umbrella as he walked, “You’re annoying Merle. And me.”

Sheepish, Angus shut up. He realized he had gotten ahead of the others, so he slowed down until he was walking next to Taako. They walked in silence for a few minutes until Angus couldn’t hold in his excitement any longer.

“Taako, sir, do you think we’ll get into any fights?”

Taako snorted. “This ‘mission’ is a glorified shopping trip. No way we’ll even see a fight, let alone get involved in one.”

Angus must have looked bummed, because Taako laughed again. “Don’t get so down, you’d probably be disappointed by seeing us fight anyway. We’re not as heroic as we seem. At least these two idiots aren’t,” he stage-whispered, shrugging a shoulder at Magnus and Merle. Merle made an indignant noise.

“Who’s the one who almost dies in every fight we end up in?” Merle huffed.

“And whose fault is that, you shitty cleric?” Taako shot back. 

Merle grumbled, apparently conceding defeat, and Magnus laughed. “Who knows, Ango, maybe we will see some action. But don’t worry, I’ll just rush in like always! You won’t even have time to take out your wand before bam! Magnus chops their arms off!” 

Angus laughed at that. Despite Magnus’s jokes, he had the utmost faith in the three heroes. Behind Merle’s gruff exterior, he really was a kind dwarf, and Angus knew his teasing was how he showed affection. Magnus was always trying to make Angus feel welcome and to make him laugh, and Angus knew that he would protect him no matter what. And Taako… well, Taako was complicated. He definitely cared about Angus; no amount of teasing could convince him otherwise. But he refused to show any positive emotion toward him at all. It was confusing and, despite Angus’s attempts to push it down, it hurt just a little. But still, he knew he could count on the boys, even though they teased him sometimes and made fun of him. He knew those were just goofs.

Probably.

When they reached Neverwinter, the team decided to spit up. Merle went to get some medical supplies, while Magnus went to check out some new training equipment for the moon base. Angus had thought he would either go with Magnus or be left to his own devices, but, to his surprise, Taako piped up.

“Ango, come on. We’re going shopping.”

Angus, a little bewildered, followed.

Taako walked fast; Angus had to jog to keep up. A little breathless, he asked, “What are we getting? Some cool magic items or new spell books? Or maybe some potions? I’ve read about some that can make you invisible! Oh and I also read about potions that-“

“Nope!” Taako said cheerfully. Offering no further explanation, he lead Angus through the crowded streets of Neverwinter, past busy apothecaries, bustling workshops, and shouting street vendors selling everything from chocolate to battle axes. He had been to Neverwinter plenty of times before to see his grandfather, but he was always amazed by the sheer quantity of people smushed together on the streets at any given time. Angus craned his neck to either side as he hustled along behind Taako, wanting to check out all the items for sale but not wanting to be left alone in the crowd.

Abruptly, Taako stopped, almost causing Angus to bump into him. “Here we are.”

Angus looked confusedly at the front of the little shop. “A general store?” Taako marched inside, and Angus hurriedly followed.

Angus watched in wonder as Taako wandered the aisles, picking up pots and pans and examining them, and turning over fruits and vegetables in his hands as he checked for imperfections. When he found something he wanted, he dropped it in Angus’s hands and kept looking through the shelves.

“Um, sir? Why… are you getting all this?”

Taako kept sifting through the goods for sale. “I’m making dinner.”

“Dinner?” Angus knew about Taako’s past as a chef, but he hadn’t cooked in awhile. Angus got the impression that he was still a little nervous about cooking for people he cared about after what happened when… something bad happened to some people who ate his food. Taako didn’t offer many details about the incident, and Angus knew better than to pry into Taako’s past. But if he was buying ingredients and cookware… that was good, right? That must mean he’s moving on! Angus was happy. He continued to balance Taako’s supplies in his arms until he had gotten everything he needed. Then Taako paid and he and Angus left, Taako swinging his umbrella and whistling while Angus carried their purchases, struggling a little under the weight.

As they walked, Angus lost himself in thought. He wondered what Taako was thinking. His face was unreadable, the perfect mask of calm and collected it always seemed to be. He never let anyone know what he was thinking or what he was feeling, unless he was complaining or bragging. Angus, despite how stupid he knew it was, realized he wanted Taako’s approval. He wanted to be a good wizard and make him proud. But Taako didn’t seem to be proud of anything he did. Suddenly, Angus had a terrifying thought: what if Taako didn’t care about him at all? Angus realized he didn't know if he did. Did Taako really care about him?

“Hey.”

Startled, Angus looked up. That wasn’t Taako’s voice. In fact, Taako was nowhere to be found; Angus must have gotten left behind when he was lost in thought.

“Hello, sir,” Angus said distractedly, looking around to try to find Taako. He realized he was in an alley. It was quiet; Angus had left behind the crowd and, as he glanced around, he saw nobody. He started to grow uneasy.

Angus finally took a second look at the person who had stopped him. He was a large tiefling, easily twice his size, with a large scar and an even larger frown marring his face. His enormous hands were cleched in fists.

"Uh, I-I'm sorry, s-sir," Angus stammered, backing away. "I d-didn't mean-"

Suddenly, two more people stepped out from the shadows: another tiefling and a human, both just as enormous as the tiefling in front of Angus. He swallowed. He got the feeling he wouldn't be getting out of this easily.

"Give us everything you have, and we'll let you live," the second tiefling said, pulling out a knife.

Angus quickly complied, handing over all the goods he and Taako had just purchased and emptying his pockets. His three assailants didn't seem satisfied, though. After looking through his things, the one with the knife addressed him again.

"Listen, kid, you've gotta have more on you than that,” he said, eying Angus’s fancy clothes and hat. “Fork it on over."

"But, that's-that's all I have!" Angus backed up again, finding himself against a wall. He had nowhere to run, and the three muggers were closing in, weapons at the ready. Angus tried not to flinch as they brought them down right onto his-

"Hey fuckwads!"

Angus’s eyes sprang open. Taako was at the mouth of the alley, umbrastaff in one hand and a shopping bag in the other. He marched directly in front of Angus, effectively blocking the muggers from him. He glared them down like he wasn't a short, skinny elf in a tank top and polkadot skirt waving around an umbrella, but instead a warrior brandishing a sword or a battle ax. Angus was in awe.

The muggers, however, didn't seem too impressed. They charged.

They didn’t stand a chance against the best wizard ever, though. Taako dispatched them quickly, leaving them prone on the street. He then strolled back up to Angus, twirling his umbrella and smirking.

“Can’t last five minutes without me, huh bubbale?” Taako bent to pick up the things the muggers had taken from Angus, but stopped. He put his hand to his side; there was a red stain slowly spreading.

“Huh. Looks like one of ‘em got a hit in.”

He dropped to his knees, clutching his side. Angus rushed over.

“Taako?! Sir?! Are you okay? Taako!”

Taako seemed to compose himself. He straightened up a bit and smiled at Angus. “I’m fine, bubbale, Merle can heal this no problem. We just need to meet up with him and Magnus and I’ll be fine.” Despite his conversational tone, his voice sounded strained. Angus was also worried about the fact that he was being so nice to him: it must mean something’s wrong if Taako can’t come up with a mean, sarcastic phrase to toss at him.

Angus, though still unconvinced, gathered up their things and followed Taako, who was moving much slower now. As they walked, Taako grew paler and paler. He was starting to sweat. Eventually Angus asked if he needed to stop.

“No, pumpkin, I’m fine,” he said, but he was breathing hard and all the color had drained from his face. Angus definitely wasn’t buying it. He dragged Taako to a nearby bench and made him sit down. Taako immediately doubled over and grabbed his side. Angus was slightly terrified.

“Hey, Angus?” Taako started. His skin was turning a sickly shade of green. “I think… I think that knife was poisoned.”

Angus was more than slightly terrified. He frantically whipped out his Stone of Farspeech and contacted Merle and Magnus, telling them to get there as fast as they could. Taako was turning paler by the second, and Angus didn’t know what to do to help him. He made him lay down across the length of the bench. Now he was shivering, and Angus super didn’t know what to do.

“H-hey Angus?” Taako asked again. He looked really bad. The poison had taken a toll on him, and the blood loss only worsened matters. He didn’t really seem coherent as he spoke. “Angus, you’re pretty good at magic, you know that? You’re, you’re a pretty good student. I’m glad that, that I was the one who got st-stabbed and not you.”

Every word out of his mouth filled Angus with pride, but also fear: Taako was never this open with his feelings. Angus let his hand hover just above Taako’s and gave a forced laugh.

“S-sir, don’t talk like you’re dying, it’s just a little cut. Stop being so dramatic!”

“Angus, I-I love you.”

Angus started. What? Surely he had heard that wrong. Did Taako just say… he loved him?

“…What was that, sir?” he whispered in bewilderment, but Taako was unconscious, breathing shallowly in his sleep. Angus dared to grab Taako’s hand and gripped it tightly until Merle and Magnus showed up a few minutes later.

It didn’t take much to get him patched up; a healing spell and a potion or two was more than enough to mitigate the poison and heal the stab wound. Magnus carried Taako as he slept to the sphere they came in on, and they began the journey home. It wasn’t long until Taako woke up, back to his old self again, making jokes about how shitty those muggers were and how Angus had looked like he was about to pee his pants. But Angus knew how Taako really felt. He smiled to himself; he would let Taako have his goofs. He finally had a family, and Angus could put up with all the shitty jokes in the world for that.


End file.
